Murakami’s altered ego

Takashi Murakami’s new exhibition opens in Doha, Qatar tomorrow. Murakami-Ego features a huge collection of work, most of which will be hard to miss: there’s a 100 metre long painting and a six metre high inflatable self-portrait

Takashi Murakami’s new exhibition opens in Doha, Qatar tomorrow. Murakami-Ego features a huge collection of work, most of which will be hard to miss: there’s a 100 metre long painting and a six metre high inflatable self-portrait…

The show at the Al Riwaq Exhibition Hall presents just about everything you’d want to see in a Murakami extravaganza, such as the multi-eyeballed mushrooms, the glossy ‘superflat’ paintings and the cheeky chappies in their bunny suits. A new work, Self-Portrait Balloon (shown above), greets visitors at the entrance to the exhibition.

But Murakami is unveiling a host of new work, including a vast canvas that runs the length of three walls in the main gallery space.

The piece is apparently a response to the recent natural disasters that have occurred in Japan. The overall theme for the show is “a dialogue with one’s own ego,” says Murakami.

And the graphic on the outside of the Al Riwaq Exhibition Hall is also rather nice, featuring a series of self-portraits.

Murakami Ego is on at the Al Riwaq Exhibition Hall, next to the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar, until 24 June.

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